Current Soldier Diagnosed with Bipolar

March 12th, 2013, 10:46 AM

One of my soldiers came to me at drill and informed me that he was recently diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Before I go chain of command, I wanted to come here to try and get a better idea of what will happen to him. His doctor is recommending medication and weekly CBT. He is an O-1.

Comment

This is only going to go through an MEB if this condition does not meet the retention standard and it is deemed to be caused or aggravated by his military duty. Otherwise if it didn't meet the retention standard it would go to a non duty related PEB.

The important questions here are...In what context did this LT report this to you?

Was it in attempt to be processed through MEB/PEB? Was it in a passing friendly lunch conversation? Does it appear to interfere with his duties? How much time in service does this person have? Is the person a traditional drilling Soldier?

You must proceed with caution depending on those answers. You cannot just go around arbitraily talking about a persons health diagnosis. It can land you in the hot seat because of HIPPA laws.